The contents of the new political-military arrangements between the Kurds and Damascus

According to KurdPress, Al-Majla claimed in an exclusive report that an agreement has been reached between Syrian authorities and representatives of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) on a set of political, military, and legal arrangements before announcing the dissolution of these forces and institutions affiliated with the autonomous administration of northern and eastern Syria.Syrian Democratic Forces Commander-in-Chief Mazloum Abdi (Kobani) announced the dissolution of the Syrian Democratic Forces after meeting with Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa at the Presidential Palace in Damascus.

According to the report, Syrian Foreign Minister Asad al-Shaibani held two working meetings with Mazloum Abdi and Ilham Ahmed, the head of the Kurdish Autonomous Administration’s foreign affairs department, in Damascus on Monday and Tuesday, and during these meetings, details of the new phase of relations between Damascus and the Kurdish forces were agreed upon. The magazine’s sources say that within this framework, senior officials in Damascus are also gradually using the title “Mr. Mazloum” to refer to Abdi instead of the title “General Mazloum,” which, according to the magazine, symbolizes Abdi’s transition from a military commander to a political figure in the new Syrian structure.One of the most important provisions of the agreement is the appointment of Mazloum Abdi as an advisor to the Syrian President. According to the proposals, his area of ​​responsibility could be issues related to various Syrian communities or Kurdish affairs, and the final details of this responsibility will be specified in a presidential decree.

At the same time, Ilham Ahmed is to be appointed as a member of the Syrian People's Assembly. The magazine wrote that this appointment will be made within the framework of the "president's list". His possible responsibilities include participating in the process of drafting the constitution or being a member of the parliament's foreign relations committee. However, the final decision on his position and mission is to be announced at a later stage.

According to the report, in the recent talks in Damascus, even the issue of appointing Ilham Ahmed to the Syrian Foreign Ministry has been raised.The options discussed included deputy foreign minister, assistant foreign minister or senior advisor to the ministry, indicating that Ahmed’s expected role will not be limited to the People’s Assembly.

In the military part of the agreement, the Syrian Democratic Forces are also to be fully integrated into the structure of the Syrian army. According to the magazine’s report, the process of integrating SDF forces into four brigades of the Syrian army will continue. Each of these brigades has about 1,300 troops, and a number of forces are still awaiting official approval to join this structure. About 1,700 more troops are in the same process. It has also been agreed that Kurdish units will be deployed in border areas.

Another important clause in the agreement concerns the Women’s Protection Units (YPJ).According to the magazine, about 1,500 members of this force are to be integrated into the Syrian Ministry of Interior and operate as internal security and counter-terrorism forces in northeastern Syria. Damascus has also agreed to examine the possibility of integrating YPJ members into the Syrian army in the next stage.

In the field of cultural rights, one of the most important commitments of Damascus is to recognize the Kurdish language as an official language. According to this agreement, some theoretical courses, including history and geography, are to be taught in Kurdish in schools in Kurdish-populated areas. The implementation of this clause will require an official decision from the Syrian government.

The magazine also reported the possibility of Mazloum Abdi and Ilham Ahmed traveling to Turkey and meeting with Abdullah Ocalan, the imprisoned leader of the Kurdistan Workers' Party of Turkey (PKK).According to the report, such a visit could help efforts to free Öcalan and gain his support for the process of integrating Kurdish forces into the Syrian government. However, the visit is still subject to an official decision by Turkey.

In this regard, another issue raised is the possibility of removing Mazloum Abdi from Turkey's terrorist list. The magazine wrote that Ankara is considering such a move, which could be similar to Turkey's previous decision to remove the name of Samir Usu, known as Sipan Hamu, from the country's blacklist.According to the summary published by the magazine, in addition to the dissolution of the military and civilian structures of the Syrian Democratic Forces, the new agreement includes the appointment of Abdi as presidential advisor, the entry of Ilham Ahmed into the People's Assembly, the recognition of the Kurdish language, the integration of the YPJ into the internal security forces, the deployment of Kurdish forces on the borders, and the continued integration of SDF forces into the Syrian army.

The report also claims that within the framework of the agreement, the Kurdistan Workers' Party must sever its ties with Syrian Kurdish units, and in return, Turkey will consider removing Mazloum Abdi's name from its terrorist list.

However, this set of items has not yet been confirmed in the form of an official and published agreement by Damascus, the Syrian Democratic Forces, or the Turkish government, and therefore it should be considered as claims of the sources cited by the magazine.The importance of this report is that if the proposed provisions are realized, the process of integrating the Kurds into the Syrian political and military structure will enter a different stage, in which some of the Kurdish leaders will be transferred from the autonomous structures to the official institutions of the Syrian government, and in return, Damascus will offer concessions in the areas of cultural rights, political representation, and the participation of Kurdish forces in security structures.